Washington, DC — On Thursday, Oct. 30, the White House announced the Presidential Determination (PD) on refugee admissions for fiscal year 2026 at 7,500. The 2026 refugee cap would be the lowest in history since the program began in 1980 and is a sharp contrast to the previous PD of 125,000 during the last year of the Biden Administration.
In the announcement, the Administration builds on Executive Order 14204 by specifying the prioritization of White Afrikaners from South Africans for resettlement. Prior to this, refugee admissions had been suspended since the President’s Jan. 20 executive order. While the White House is required by law to consult with Congress regarding the annual PD, some members of Congress have stated that no meeting has taken place between them and the White House regarding this issue.
The current refugee system was formalized in the 1980 Refugee Act, a bill that SEARAC (then known as the Indochina Resource Action Center) helped pass and was one of the primary means to help resettle over 1.2 million Southeast Asian refugees in the United States. Quyên Đinh, SEARAC Executive Director, responds to the 2026 PD:
“Southeast Asian Americans are here today because of our nation’s moral leadership in providing a home to those fleeing for their lives. Families like mine fled persecution, war, and famine and are living proof of the United States’ legacy. We are outraged that this Administration would turn its back on that history and the most vulnerable people in the world by setting a historically low refugee admissions cap.
Setting the refugee admissions cap at just 7,500 while explicitly creating a preference for white Christians is discriminatory and betrays the fundamental value of compassion that the program was built on. Refugee protections must not be selective. It must reflect our shared humanity. History has shown that refugee resettlement is not a partisan issue; it is a moral one, rooted in justice and equality for all people seeking safety. We urge Congress to step in where this Administration has faltered and demand that the White House reverse course by significantly increasing the PD for fiscal year 2026 and admitting refugees who have already been approved for resettlement.”
